Mentor HSMT-UD Headphones

Surround sound for you and only you!

As computer products evolve and users demand higher performance, manufacturers become more innovative in their search for faster, lighter, and higher quality products. This is what Sunnytech, Inc. may have been trying to accomplish with their 5.1 surround sound Mentor HSMT-UD headphones. Recently I had the opportunity to try out these new headphones. I will admit I do not usually prefer headphones over my bookshelf style external PC speakers. My main issue with headphones is the weight. I also have problems with the size and the limited ability to move with them on.

I have an enormous head which will easily test the limits of most baseball caps and headphones alike. I was extremely happy to see and feel that the Mentor HSMT-UD headphones were both large enough for my head and light enough to keep from straining my already strained neck muscles. The headphones themselves weigh a light 5 ounces and have a lengthy 8 foot USB cable that is compatible with USB 1.0 and newer systems.

The control center for the Mentor HSMT-UD headphones is approximately 2 feet from the USB connection, which allows plenty of room to store it away or display it proudly. This little black box weighs approximately 5 ounces and has a colorful orange plastic window covering the Mentor logo. When in use the window lights up and gives off a nice orange glowing effect. The great thing about the control center being located so far down the cord is the weight distribution. Most headphones will have this unit mounted in the headphones themselves, thus adding to the weight and as I mentioned above, reason number one why I do not typically like headphones. The cord was more than long enough (8 feet) to allow easy movement without having to worry about backing up over a cord or turning to one side and ripping them off my head.

The Mentor HSMT-UD headphones are easily adjustable to any size head, and yes, even to my large melon head! The earpiece is egg-shaped and padded with a cloth material to create a comfortable fit that almost makes you forget they are there. The cloth material was a welcome sight instead of the usual black plastic covers that can quickly become uncomfortable or the foam covers that do not shield external noise as effectively.

The external covers of the earpieces are a lightweight hardened plastic that is metallic silver in color. The headset is an adjustable, flexible plastic and does not have the typical padding, which due to the ultra light weight is not needed with the Mentor HSMT-UD headphones.

The headphones incorporate a true 6 chamber surround sound system, so the sound quality is awesome to say the least. The Mentor HSMT-UD headphones also incorporate Safebass technology to prevent hearing loss with extended use. This is a nice addition, because the Mentor HSMT-UD headphones surprisingly do not have a volume control. This has to be the only thing keeping this product from scoring high on my must buy list.

The installation is about as easy as it gets. Just plug the USB connector into a USB port and away you go. There is no software included with the headphones, which is a pro and a con. The pro is that it is simple to install, but the con is that since there is no volume adjustment. You will need to adjust the volume with either the basic Windows volume control or additional software. I suppose you could also adjust it via a multimedia keyboard? if you have one. Luckily I have SoundMAX® 4.0 installed on my XP Pro system, which allows for the adjustments to be made via the equalizer option.